Foundation Center Blogs

10/24/2013

In an innovative approach to sourcing ideas for funding, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) conducted an open call for applicants—in 1,000 characters or less—to share an idea and their vision for how it could change the world. More than 500 individuals and organizations shared submissions, which reflected some of our country’s greatest health challenges: access to quality care, the social determinants of health, leveraging the abundance of data available to improve outcomes and accelerating the current pace of discovery.

Last week, a team of health care and science experts from RWJF and other organizations gathered to listen and evaluate the resulting set of groundbreaking health care proposals in front of a live audience as part of an effort to open up the philanthropic application process and increase innovation. This first-ever Pioneer Pitch Day took place at the New York headquarters of AppNexus and consisted of eight fast-paced presentations by finalists, followed by questions from a rotating panel of judges and the audience, for a total pitch time of ten minutes each.

You can read the full article, published on Transparency Talk, by clicking here.

gIn an innovative approach to sourcing ideas for funding, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) conducted an open call for applicants—in 1,000 characters or less—to share an idea and their vision for how it could change the world. More than 500 individuals and organizations shared submissions, which reflected some of our country’s greatest health challenges: access to quality care, the social determinants of health, leveraging the abundance of data available to improve outcomes and accelerating the current pace of discovery.

Last week, a team of health care and science experts from RWJF and other organizations gathered to listen and evaluate the resulting set of groundbreaking health care proposals in front of a live audience as part of an effort to open up the philanthropic application process and increase innovation. This first-ever Pioneer Pitch Day took place at the New York headquarters of AppNexus and consisted of eight fast-paced presentations by finalists, followed by questions from a rotating panel of judges and the audience, for a total pitch time of ten minutes each.

- See more at: http://blog.glasspockets.org/2013/10/keller-20131023.html#sthash.vqo5lQnY.kRbKyBzG.dpuf

In an innovative approach to sourcing ideas for funding, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) conducted an open call for applicants—in 1,000 characters or less—to share an idea and their vision for how it could change the world. More than 500 individuals and organizations shared submissions, which reflected some of our country’s greatest health challenges: access to quality care, the social determinants of health, leveraging the abundance of data available to improve outcomes and accelerating the current pace of discovery.

Last week, a team of health care and science experts from RWJF and other organizations gathered to listen and evaluate the resulting set of groundbreaking health care proposals in front of a live audience as part of an effort to open up the philanthropic application process and increase innovation. This first-ever Pioneer Pitch Day took place at the New York headquarters of AppNexus and consisted of eight fast-paced presentations by finalists, followed by questions from a rotating panel of judges and the audience, for a total pitch time of ten minutes each.

- See more at: http://blog.glasspockets.org/2013/10/keller-20131023.html#sthash.vqo5lQnY.kRbKyBzG.dpuf

In an innovative approach to sourcing ideas for funding, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) conducted an open call for applicants—in 1,000 characters or less—to share an idea and their vision for how it could change the world. More than 500 individuals and organizations shared submissions, which reflected some of our country’s greatest health challenges: access to quality care, the social determinants of health, leveraging the abundance of data available to improve outcomes and accelerating the current pace of discovery.

Last week, a team of health care and science experts from RWJF and other organizations gathered to listen and evaluate the resulting set of groundbreaking health care proposals in front of a live audience as part of an effort to open up the philanthropic application process and increase innovation. This first-ever Pioneer Pitch Day took place at the New York headquarters of AppNexus and consisted of eight fast-paced presentations by finalists, followed by questions from a rotating panel of judges and the audience, for a total pitch time of ten minutes each.

- See more at: http://blog.glasspockets.org/2013/10/keller-20131023.html#sthash.vqo5lQnY.kRbKyBzG.dpuf

10/10/2013

As the 2015 deadline for achieving the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) nears, philanthropic leaders convened at the Ford Foundation on September 27 to discuss methods for effectively collaborating with the social sector, government, and private sector to ensure their work leads to substantive long-term change. Panelists discussed the significance of transparency and accountability in achieving the MDGs.

The MDGs, created in 2000, consist of eight goals to fight poverty, hunger, and disease, empower women, protect maternal health and children, and ensure environmental sustainability across the globe. Targets include cutting poverty in half, stopping the spread of HIV/AIDS, and providing universal primary education. Governments have been tasked with setting and implementing the MDGs, but philanthropy plays a significant role in supporting these processes and helping to shape the post-2015 international development agenda spearheaded by the U.N. That effort has yielded the collection of input from 1.5 million people and counting through a program called A Million Voices: The World We Want.

You can read the full article, published on Transparency Talk, by clicking here.

As the 2015 deadline for achieving the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) nears, philanthropic leaders convened at the Ford Foundation on September 27 to discuss methods for effectively collaborating with the social sector, government, and private sector to ensure their work leads to substantive long-term change. Panelists discussed the significance of transparency and accountability in achieving the MDGs. - See more at: http://blog.glasspockets.org/2013/10/keller-20131009.html#sthash.sMorKcxa.vGQFXonn.dpuf

05/09/2013

Foundation leaders who want to increase the accountability of their work should consider supporting efforts to solicit feedback from beneficiaries, say three experts in the field of conducting recipient assessments.

03/28/2013

Click here to read an interview with Alan S. Divack, Senior Project Manager for Archives and Knowledge Management at the Ford Foundation International Fellowships Program, published on Transparency Talk, a Foundation Center blog. Divack was a guest at the recent Philanthropy New York forum, "How Will Your Foundation's Story Be Told in 100 Years: Why Archives Matter," which was chronicled in a blog post here.

12/20/2012

In recent years there has been much written about the future of philanthropy. But what about its past and what we, as a field, can collectively learn from it? On December 11, Philanthropy New York sponsored a program exploring these themes. The program, "How Will Your Foundation's Story Be Told in 100 Years: Why Archives Matter," featured insights from archivists and foundation leaders about the significance and logistical issues of creating and maintaining archive records that are timely and accessible to internal staff and the public at large.

Read the full article on Transparency Talk, a Foundation Center blog, by clicking here.

12/07/2012

Corporations have long collected data generated by and/or relevant to their operations –- everything from sales figures, to permit applications, to industry trends and customer behavior. Increasingly, however, regulatory and watchdog groups are demanding that companies provide information about the impact of their activities on society and the environment.

As the corporate social responsibility (CSR) movement has gained traction, indices and lists that seek to quantify and rank company activities according to sustainability principles have proliferated. Financial analysts, media groups, and independent consultancies today produce annual assessments of everything from the amount of carbon companies put into the atmosphere to the sustainability of their supply chain management and the diversity of their boards. Those metrics, in turn, are often used by customers, investors, and prospective job candidates to determine their level of engagement with a particular company.

Read the full article on PhilanTopic, a Foundation Center blog, by clicking here.

11/30/2012

Leonida Wanyama sat at her living room table in her mud-and-sticks house at the base of the Lugulu Hills in western Kenya contemplating her assets. Her fifteen-year-old son Gideon had been sent home from boarding school because she couldn't pay the latest tuition bill. Her four-year-old daughter Dorcas was begging for more food, even though the cupboard was bare. Her husband Peter, weak from malaria, a condition worsened by malnutrition, did what he could to feed his family, but the planting season was just beginning and themaize crop wouldn't be ready to harvest for months. Leonida decided to sell her last goat for a thousand shillings -- enough to convince Gideon's principal to take him back as she struggled to come up with the remaining tuition. Food would have to wait.

Click here to read the review of The Last Hunger Season: A Year in an African Farm Community on the Brink of Change by Roger Thurow. The review is published on PhilanTopic, a Foundation Center blog.

10/10/2012

The most effective way to create change that benefits humans above the bottom line is to combine social change efforts with the profit motive under the umbrella of a multinational corporation.

So writes Timothy J. Mohin in his new book Changing Business From the Inside Out: A Treehugger's Guide to Working in Corporations. And with an eighteen-year career in the field known as corporate responsibility (CR), he provides a wealth of knowledge to back up his claim.

Read the full article on Philanthropy News Digest, a Foundation Center blog, by clicking here.